A Gray and Stormy Day
by super3rainbow1
Summary: Rainbow Dash has taken shelter in Carousal Boutique until a storm dies down. While there, she has to get along with Rarity and find something to do.
1. Chapter 1

Rainbow Dash stood in Sugarcube Corner with her saddlebag on, tapping impatiently for the pink earth pony to come back with the last sweet to deliver. She had ordered her flight team to start a storm without her while she helped out Pinkie Pie and the Cakes' with their new catering service. So far, it proved to be a bad idea for them. Too many ponies had relied on them to deliver their pastries and sweets. They couldn't keep up with baking and delivering at the same time not to mention that taking care of the twins also took up a lot of their time.

"Pinkie Pie!" Rainbow Dash called out. "I don't have all day! My weather team is about to start the storm soon and I need to make sure they'll have it under control!"

Pinkie Pie burst through the double doors from the kitchen in the back. "Okey-dokey, Rainbow Dashie!" she said, earning a unamused look in return.

"Well, where is it? Who and where am I delivering to?" Rainbow Dash asked.

The party pony pulled a box of chocolates out of her mane with a little stickie on it. Using her mouth, she expertly tossed it right into Rainbow Dash's saddlebag without missing.

"That's your last delivery! Thanks for all the help by the way. This is for Rarity," Pinkie Pie said, bouncing up and down in place.

Rainbow Dash rolled her eyes. "Yeah, yeah.. you're welcome. What happened to the pegasus who was supposed to deliver all the muffins?"

"Oh, she came back earlier and asked to be paid in muffins! What a silly filly! She must have been really hungry to do something like that!" Pinkie Pie replied.

"Figures. Look, I really gotta go. Later, Pinks," Rainbow Dash said and glanced at the clock.

The clock made a clicking noise as the little hand reached the ten. Rainbow Dash sprung into action, leaving the confectionary in a rainbow blur as she pumped her wings. Within seconds, she was already at Carousal Boutique. She knocked on the door but there was no answer.

"You gotta be joking me!" Rainbow Dash complained out loud. She kept knocking on the door but Rarity or her little sister didn't answer. The lights were on but nopony was getting the door. Finally, Rainbow Dash tried to open the door and let herself in. To her surprise, it was unlocked. She swung the door wide open and hurried inside.

"Rari-" Rainbow Dash started to call out but was interrupted by the loud sound of thunder.

The thunder was followed by the sound of rain hitting hard on the roof and ground. The door was still open, making the noise of the rain unmuffled and very loud. Rainbow Dash sat down in frustration. This was the very thing she so dearly wished wouldn't happen again. It happened before when she was hanging out with Fluttershy at her cottage. She had gotten trapped by her own storm-again.

Seconds after Rainbow Dash sat in her anger, Rarity emerged from her "inspiration room" to investigate the loud noise of the rain. Her face wore a look of confusion and panic as she saw Rainbow Dash sitting in the middle of the room and the door wide open, letting the rain splash inside. She closed the door with her magic and faced Rainbow Dash.

"Rainbow Dash! Why did you leave the door wide open and let the rain in?" Rarity asked.

"Oh look, now you came. I was knocking on the door for like ten minutes! Thanks a lot, by the way," Rainbow Dash complained.

"What are you even doing here?" Rarity asked.

Rainbow Dash reached into her saddlebag and tossed out the box of chocolates. "Oh, just bringing your dumb box of chocolates for you, lazy flank," she spit out.

"Lazy? You're one to talk! All I have ever seen you do is take naps on the clouds," Rarity said.

"What do you mean by that?" Rainbow Dash asked, getting close to her face.

Realizing that they were coming close to a fight, Rarity stopped herself and re-adjusted her mane. "Look Rainbow Dash, I think we really came off the wrong hoof. Now, if you could stop yelling, why don't we just try to sort this out," she suggested.

Rainbow Dash murmured, "You were yelling too" under her breath but the unicorn didn't seem to hear it. "Sure, I guess so," she simply said and sat down with a unhappy look.

"I'm sorry if I made you wait for long. Honestly, I was in my inspiration and to make it short, I was in the zone, working on this outfit design that I just came up with. I didn't hear anything at all until you left the door open and it started raining," Rarity explained.

She extended out a hoof towards Rainbow Dash as means of shaking off in apology. Rainbow Dash knew it was implied that she was to say her apology back and then shake hooves. Still, she felt no remorse on her part as if there was nothing to blame on her. Reluctantly, she stuck out her hoof and met Rarity's.

"Okay," Rainbow Dash said, rolling her eyes. "I guess I'm sorry for yelling."

Rarity raised an eyebrow. "And for leaving the door open," she added.

"Whatever, and for leaving the door open," Rainbow Dash said and shook hooves.

"Now that we got this over with, what was the dilemma, Rainbow Dash?" Rarity asked.

Rainbow Dash got up and started to walk around the room. "Nothing really.. now I have to go through my own storm just to get home!" she said, turning around to glance at her.

"Well, I'm sorry. Are you really going to fly through that cold, windy, and unforgiving storm?" Rarity asked, watching Rainbow Dash walk up to the window and look out.

"I'm going to have to. I can't leave my weather team to take care of it themselves," Rainbow Dash said, looking at the miserable sight of the storm.

It was dark and gloomy outside. Nopony was foolish enough to be out there in the cold rain. All the houses around had their windows blinds closed and light leaking out from the spaces. Rainbow Dash never really had an opportunity to be on this side of the storm except for the time she spent it at Fluttershy's cottage. Of course, that was something that she never told anypony about. She ended up spending that day being hugged by a terrified Fluttershy as it continued to thunder loudly. Yet, she still couldn't say that she didn't like it.

Rarity interrupted Rainbow Dash's thoughts. "Why would you think that they couldn't handle a little storm? Why don't you just let them take care of it while you spend the day here?" she suggested.

Rainbow Dash turned around. "No thanks," she quickly replied.

"Nonsense! It would be rude of me to let you go out in that horrid storm. What if I fixed us something to eat?" Rarity asked, hoping to convince her.

The cyan pegasus turned around again. She had been enticed by the offer of food. Rainbow Dash put a thoughtful face on. At this point, Rarity was begging her to stay for reasons of feeling guilty. As much as she wanted to help her team, she did believe that they were fully competent at their jobs. She took a glance out the window and then reluctantly walked towards Rarity.

_I can't believe that I'm going to do this. This is like the last place I want to spend my time. It better be worth getting something to eat and staying warm and dry_, Rainbow Dash thought.

Rarity nodded and squeaked in delight. "This is great! We'll have so much fun today! We're going to play dress up, do our manes, and have a pleasant little tea party!" she said as they walked into the kitchen.

"What have I gotten myself into?" Rainbow Dash whispered to herself.


	2. Chapter 2

Rainbow Dash and Rarity sat down at the table in the kitchen. At this point, Rainbow Dash was considering to just have a quick snack and be on her way. It wouldn't be impossible to fly through a simple rainstorm like this. Of course, she would end up getting soaked and be freezing cold but it seemed like her only chance to escape what boring and humiliating activities that were ahead.

"It's actually quite fortunate that you came here, Rainbow Dash," Rarity said.

"Oh really? Why's that?" Rainbow Dash asked.

Rarity got up and peered into her fridge. "Well, you see, Sweetie Belle normally would be here a lot of times to keep me company but this time she stayed with her friends at their little tree house. I'm glad that you're here. I wouldn't like to spend such a dreadful day sad and alone," she explained.

Rainbow Dash felt a slight change of heart. _Now, I really can't just leave her like this. That would be so uncool of me to ditch her if she's this lonely. All of this stuff sounds too girly for me to handle. What am I going do to_? she thought.

"Um.. well, you're welcome!" Rainbow Dash tried to say.

"Thank you, Rainbow Dash! I can assure you that today won't be as bad if I have a good friend to spend the time with," Rarity said and pulled out a bag of lettuce along with other salad ingredients using her magic.

"Oh, of course! Rainbow Dash said and gave a fake smile.

Rarity levitated two bowls of salads onto the table. Rainbow Dash looked down at her bowl of salad with a hidden look of disgust. Salad was not something she enjoyed eating on a regular basis. Rather, she only enjoyed the ones which Fluttershy sometimes made for her. Gingerly, she leaned down and grabbed a small piece of lettuce out of the salad. She carefully chewed, expecting a sudden distaste of the food.

"So, Rainbow Dash, let's talk. You really don't say a whole lot about yourself," Rarity said, trying to make conversation.

Rainbow Dash looked up. "That's 'cause I really don't have anything to share," she said.

"Well, what about love? Isn't there somepony out there at all who captures your attention?" Rarity inquired and batted her eyes.

"I-I.. what's it to you? Why is it so important to you?" Rainbow Dash stuttered back, blushing in embarrassment. _Who is she to ask me that? It's none of her business!_ she thought.

"I'm not asking for names. I just am curious if you have any interest in the ponies around here. There's no need to get all upset," Rarity said.

Hesitating, Rainbow Dash said, "I d-don't know.. I really don't feel comfortable talking about this sort of thing, Rarity," she nervously replied.

"Darling, if it makes you uncomfortable talking about it then just say so," Rarity stopped her. "So do you like the salad that I made?" she asked, changing the subject.

Rainbow Dash took a larger bite to get a better opinion of the taste this time. She wished that Rarity had put a different dressing on it because it tasted very different from the ones she had in the past. In fact, it tasted very similar to one that she had at a fancy restaurant a while ago. The only reason why she even went to such a place was because all her were friends were begging her to go with them there.

"It's.. okay," Rainbow Dash lied.

"Okay?" Rarity asked with an exasperated expression. "Honestly, I expected you to like it more than that. Don't you know that this is the kind of salad that they make in most of the restaurants in Canterlot?"

"Yeah, I figured it was by the taste. It would have been better if you just made a, 'normal salad' instead of one that just tastes weird," Rainbow Dash said in a dry tone.

Rarity turned her head away in disgust. "I can't believe how a pony such as yourself would think a expensive salad like this tastes, 'weird' like you said," she said.

"Well, excuse me for having a different opinion!" Rainbow Dash said, flaring her wings.

"Fine. Just let it go to waste then," Rarity said.

Rainbow Dash let out a frustrated groan. "I didn't say that I couldn't eat it," she said.

Instead of waiting for a response, she dove right in the salad, eating in a very sloppy manner and making a mess. In a matter of seconds, the bowl was empty. She lifted her head up from the bowl with small pieces of lettuce stuck to her muzzle. Rarity's face slightly reddened as she shook her head in anger at the sight.

"What in Celestia is wrong with you, Rainbow Dash? Are you crazy? Look at this mess!" Rarity yelled, seething with rage.

_Great. Why did I do that? I'm so dumb!_ Rainbow Dash thought. "I.. um.. well.." she stuttered, blushing in pure embarrassment after her strange outburst.

"What? Tell me, why did you do that?" Rarity pressed. She was now using her nostrils to breath through because she was so upset.

"I.. um.. I'm sorry! I got carried away! I'll clean up, okay?" Rainbow Dash said and tried to wipe the table with her own hoof.

Rarity let out a long sigh and rested her head on a hoof. "Just stop, Rainbow Dash. I'll use my magic so you won't have to get yourself all messy and unclean," she said in a low, strained voice.

Rainbow Dash stopped and let Rarity take care of the mess that she made. She watched as the unicorn manipulated the towel with her magic and wiped away the mess. Instead of brushing off the pieces of lettuce, she used her tongue to grab the bits that were close to her mouth. Before she knew it, a napkin was rubbing off the rest of the food that had gotten stuck to her face and muzzle.

"Sorry, Rarity," Rainbow Dash apologized.

Hesitating for a few seconds, Rarity replied, "I forgive you.. I suppose."

An awkward silence filled the room as both ponies were left unwilling to say another word or start up a conversation with the other. Rainbow Dash contemplated on how bad of an idea it was to stay here. She could've just simply left Rarity's box of chocolates out in the rain and let it get soggy and mushy. If she did that, this whole ordeal wouldn't be happening and Rarity would discover her sweets in the ruined box, probably ending up throwing it out anyway.

Rainbow Dash tried to break the silence and uneasiness between each other. "Look, is there something that you want to do then?" she asked.

Rarity paused for a minute as if trying to decide. "I suppose that we could do something together. Very well then. Let us head to my inspiration room and we can decide there," she said.

_How can this get any better? _Rainbow Dash thought sarcastically. _Now, she's probably going to have me dress up while we sit at some dumb tea party_.

Rainbow Dash followed Rarity and prepared herself for what boring things she'll try to come up with and/or make her do. She tried to come up with other things to do in her head but nothing came up. According to what she believed, she was at the wrong place at the wrong time.


	3. Chapter 3

Rainbow Dash followed Rarity into her 'inspiration room' with her gut telling her that this was a bad idea. She already knew what was coming. They most likely will end up doing each other's mane, sipping tea, and dressing up. That was if Rainbow Dash didn't have any say in what they will do.

Inside the room was a few mannequins that were lined up near the windows. There were dressers full of organized materials and clear labels. A trash bin was filled with discarded ideas that were drawn on paper. On a table was damaged clothing waiting to be stitched back up. On another table was a stylish purple hat.

"Okay. What shall we do, Rainbow Dash?" Rarity asked.

Rainbow shrugged and laid down. "I don't know. Maybe we can play a board game," she suggested.

"Darling, don't lie down on the dirty floor," Rarity told her. She used her magic to pull out two cushions from under one the tables which were meant for sitting or laying on.

"Whatever," Rainbow Dash said and relocated herself to the nearest cushion.

Rarity sat down with her. "I don't want to play a silly boring board game. It's completely pointless and certainly less entertaining than dress up," she said.

"You gotta be joking! I used to play these all the time with Fluttershy when we were fillies. Also, there's no way I'm playing dress up like a foal with you!" Rainbow Dash said, laughing hysterically.

"How dare you? Fine. How would you like your mane done?" Rarity asked.

Rainbow Dash shielded her mane with both hooves. "The way it is already! I'm not doing all this girly stuff! Why can't we just play a simple game of cards or something else?" she yelled.

"Why can't you be a real lady like Fluttershy or Twilight?" Rarity yelled back.

"'Cause I don't want to be lame. Why can't you just let me be myself and stop telling me what to do?" Rainbow Dash replied.

Rarity's horn started to glow. "That's it," she yelled. "You're going to get your mane done and you're going to like it!" she shrieked and targeted Rainbow Dash with her magic.

Quickly, Rainbow Dash barrel rolled out of the room before the unicorn could stop her with her magic. "Hah! You're going to have to try harder than that to catch this pegasus!" she teased.

The unicorn burst from the room with an agile jump. Deciding to make a rather unwise move, Rainbow Dash flapped her wings and flew up close to the ceiling. Before she knew it, there was an aura surrounding her. Trying to resist, she fought against the unstoppable force pulling her in but to little avail. Suddenly, a flash of lightning filled with windows with light and the loud sound of thunder followed.

Both ponies screamed in surprise as Rarity knocked over the lamp which kept the main room lit up. The room went dark and as they fumbled about, trying to make their way back into the other room. Rainbow Dash tried to make a safe landing down but ended up knocking over a few mannequins.

"Ow!" Rainbow Dash groaned, rubbing her injuries.

"What did you knock over?" Rarity asked as her horn started to glow again.

A glowing ball of magic appeared over Rarity's head and illuminated the entire room. Rainbow Dash covered her eyes for a second before letting them adjust to light. Her right foreleg and wing were a little bruised. Rarity sighed and used her magic to clean the mess she made from breaking the lamp.

"Way to make me hurt myself," Rainbow Dash complained as she examined her minor injuries.

Rarity turned around and snapped at her. "You know what? It wasn't even worth having you stay here in the first place! I'm sick of you, Rainbow Dash!" she screamed in anger.

Before Rainbow Dash could say anything, Rarity had promptly turned and was looking out the window. In the reflection of the window, she could see a tear falling down the unicorn's face. Rainbow Dash didn't know what to say. Suddenly, she felt guilty for all her actions. Here, the Element of Generosity had so graciously let her stay and even tried to fix her something eat but she only had been rude in return.

_What's the point? I didn't mean to make her this upset. I"m better off saying a quick apology and getting out of her mane as soon as I can,_ Rainbow Dash thought.

"Look, Rarity..." Rainbow Dash began but the unicorn only turned her head slightly in acknowledgment. Still, she continued to talk. "I'll be honest here, I'm a terrible house quest... but I guess that you knew that already. Heck, I'm even a bad friend too." the unicorn wiped her face and turned around. "We really weren't meant to be friends anyway and um... well... I'll just... leave you alone," she finished and made her way to the door.

"Wait!" Rarity called out, rushing to stop her. "I'm sorry!" she apologized.

Rainbow Dash shook her head. "No, I'm sorry. It's all my fault anyway. I was rude and I don't deserve your hospitality," she quietly said, lowering her head down.

Rarity stopped her with a hoof on her shoulder. "It's my fault too, Rainbow Dash. I didn't mean to get upset over nothing but it happened anyway. If it weren't for me ignoring your knocking on the door, we wouldn't be having such an unpleasant day," she explained.

"No, Rare, I was the one upset 'cause it seemed like you were always trying to tell me what do with my life and such. I mean like, how I act and stuff and what I like," she said and rested her sore foreleg on her shoulder.

Taking the hint, Rarity hugged the downtrodden pegasus and was surprised to find that she was hugging back. "Sorry, you're right. I shouldn't be so critical of you for being different or having a different opinion," she apologized.

"It's okay, I'm just a terrible pony anyway," Rainbow Dash bitterly admitted.

"I think that you're a wonderful friend and that this was all just some misunderstanding perhaps. We should look past this and start over. How 'bout a compromise then?" Rarity said.

"Deal," Rainbow Dash simply said and broke away from the hug.

* * *

**A/N:** Depending on whether or not I see it fit, I might add a little prologue chapter if this isn't enough to end the story with.


End file.
